


Love and Calamity (RinHaru)

by Akiragane



Series: Love and Other Disasters [1]
Category: Free!
Genre: Both are REALLY bad at feelings, Calamity is a word, Canon Universe, Fluff, Getting Together, Look it Up, M/M, Mentions of Agriculture??, Sharks or Dolphins?, Swearing, Swim Club, Swimming
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-01
Updated: 2020-07-08
Packaged: 2021-03-04 18:46:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,684
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25011100
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Akiragane/pseuds/Akiragane
Summary: It's weird, sometimes Haru thinks he can't feel a thing, then Rin comes into his life and all of a sudden all these new feelings come crashing into his soul.Rin can't seem to decidewhathe feels for Haru. Love or Hate, it's all too confusing.One way or another, they have to figure out who they want to be to each other. It takes a lot of overthinking to realize they're both idiots.
Relationships: Matsuoka Rin/Nanase Haruka
Series: Love and Other Disasters [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1810888
Kudos: 45





	1. Where The Other Stands

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a quick little ditty I came up with to build upon a bigger story.
> 
> I hope you enjoy!
> 
> :)

Calamity, noun, a great misfortune or disaster. Grievous affliction. Misery.

Isn't that perfect for Haru's feelings?

Most people would tell him he was cold, distant, all around emotionless. He only showed what was under a thick shell when water or his closest friends were around.

Or if Rin was around.

And that always confused him. Why did Rin have this kind of effect on him? Why couldn't Nagisa or Rei or especially Makoto make him feel the way he did when he was around Rin? Rin made him want to smile, made him want to laugh. He wanted more than anything to swim with him. He had been so upset when he thought he had made Rin angry all those years ago. But he couldn't name this feeling if he tried. Probably a result of his parents never being around to show him what love was.

"Hey, Haru?" Gou asked, waving a hand in front of Haru's face.

He blinked, then shook his head a few times. "Yeah?" he asked.

"You were spacing out," she explained.

It took a second to remember where he was. Right, swim club meeting. They were just waiting for Nagisa to show up. Rei was looking through some papers and Makoto was staring at Haru. When they made eye contact, he only smiled. Haru didn't have the energy to smile back.

At that moment Nagisa came through the doors, carrying soda's in his arms. He tossed them each to the people, most of them barely having the reaction time to catch them. Haru caught his with ease and set it down, watching Makoto fumble not to drop his. "Nagisa!" Rei scolded. "Where were you?"

Nagisa rubbed the back of his neck. "Sorry, got held up," he replied. "I wanted to get sodas for this since they always end up being soooo boring. So I think a thank you is in order." he teased.

Rei sighed and facepalmed. Haru opened his bottle and took a sip. "Thanks, Nagisa," he said since no one else was going to, apparently.

Makoto perked up. "Uh, yeah. Thank you, Nagisa. Now, can we please start the meeting?" he begged.

Nagisa shrugged as he opened his soda and drank half of it. "Sure, go ahead. I'm listening."

Haru couldn't promise the same. He was only half-listening when Makoto started talking. Rei would mostly respond and sometimes Gou would interject, talking about meaningless things like budget and tournaments. All Haru wanted to do was swim. He'd have to take a bath when he got home, or better yet, get in the ocean. Yeah, that sounded fun.

What if he asked Rin to swim with him? Would he accept? Probably not. His schoolwork was probably grueling, and he most likely didn't have the time to swim outside of practice.

Would it hurt to ask?

"Haru, are you listening?" Makoto tapped Haru on the shoulder.

Haru returned to harsh reality and nodded, a blunt lie. Makoto once again smiled at him and started talking again.

🌊🌊🌊

"Well, fuck."

Rin banged his head into his desk. Nitori offered him a worried smile. "Matsuoka-sempai, are you sure you can do this? You seem like you need he-"

"I'm fine, Nitori. Any idiot can write an essay," he grumbled.

"But not everyone can write one in an hour and a half." Yep, Nitori was concerned now. "If you want I can write the citations for you if that'll put any weight off your shoulders."

Rin almost snapped at him, but then he regained his composure and took a deep breath. "Thanks, but I'm fine. I just need to focus," he replied.

He promised himself he would get this done by today. He had 90 minutes to finish and turn it in before 6th period. He just had to write the conclusion, then citations, then he'd be set. But for some reason, he had hit a part which frustrated him beyond measure. 

_...and for these reasons, I can firmly conclude that agriculture was the greatest -_

There was the problem. He had already used the word 'disaster' and 'mistake' twice each. And he was too tired to think of another adjective, and he was certain it would lower his grade if he used either of those.

He laid on his desk and tried to think.

He saw a picture of him and Haru from their trip to Australia. Rin was smiling and holding up two fingers behind Haru's head, and the other was wearing a crooked smile. Rin smiled to himself at the memory. It seemed that the only time Haru smiled or allowed physical touch was around him. Everyone else he just crossed his arms and spaced out. At one point Rin had resented him for it, but now it was something he grew quite fond of. Haru was one of his closest friends, that wasn't going to change so soon. He had already made a vow to swim with him whenever suited Haru if he asked.

Rin blinked and suddenly an epiphany came to him.

Of course, Sousuke had to come in and ruin his train of thought.

The door opened and he walked in. Nitori becoming very distressed suddenly. "Yamazaki-sempai! I'm sorry! I was just-" he tried to explain himself.

"It's okay, Aiichirou," Sousuke assured him. "But if you don't mind I think you should get back to your dorm."

Nitori nodded, collected his stuff, and bowed a hundred times before heading out. Sousuke shut the door and came into Rin's line of sight. "You doing okay?" he asked.

Rin nodded. "Yeah, all good now," he mumbled.

Sousuke nodded, then went over to his own desk and began working on some homework as well. Rin sat up and finished the sentence.

_I can firmly conclude that agriculture was the greatest calamity in human history._

After 25 minutes Rin finished, and he felt wiped. He needed a good swim, but there weren't any practices today, due to the pool being cleaned. Rin looked out his window. Maybe he'd go out and swim in the ocean. How long had it been since he did that? That sounded fantastic right now, actually.

And just like that, it was settled. After school, he'd head out and go swimming in the ocean.

🌊🌊🌊

Calamity wasn't supposed to be a good thing.

And yet, it was the perfect word.

Rin and Haru would soon find that out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Which do you prefer, dolphins or sharks?
> 
> Personally I like dolphins. I had the chance to ride one about a year ago, and I highly recommend it if you are able to. They're so friendly and adorable.
> 
> I do think sharks are cool, and I love our shark boy, Rin, but dolphins have my heart. <3


	2. On A Beach With The Waves

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Is this based off the song Oh, Calamity by All Time Low and I got the idea from it after watching TheAlchemicFox's CMV with these two in it?
> 
> No, I don't know where you got that idea.
> 
> :))

It was nearly sundown when Rin arrived at the beach.

The water was low tide, slapping peacefully against the sun.

He walked down to the beach area, void of people, and sat down. The tide wouldn't come in for a few minutes, no reason to jump in just yet.

All of it was a beautiful sight, too bad no one else was here to see it. This might be a great place to take someone on a date. Rin almost laughed at the thought. He was too busy for that kind of thing, anyway. Not like there was anyone he's really fallen for.

Of course, that made him think.

Wasn't there someone who made him happy? Someone he always wanted to be around? Someone who he could make so many exceptions for?

One person came to mind before Rin quickly pushed them out of his head.

No way. Rin wasn't in love with him. He couldn't be. That wouldn't make any sense.

A splash came from the water. Rin yelped and scrambled back.

Haru stood up and stared directly at Rin, expression changing a thousand times before settling on a smile. "Hi, Rin," he said.

Rin blinked. "Haru?!" he shouted. "What are you doing here?"

Haru stepped out of the water and sat down next to Rin. "Wanted to swim in something bigger than a bathtub," he explained.

That made sense. If water were a person, Haru would be all over them. That was the one thing he loved more than anything. "Ah, I see." Rin felt like he was choking.

"I assume that's why you're here too, right?"

Rin felt red creep up his face. "Uh, yeah. I was waiting for the tide to get a little higher, though."

Haru nodded, and the two settled into a small bout of silence. Shit, Rin was just thinking about Haru and here he was. Why did the universe hate him? What did he do wrong? He wasn't being _too_ much of an asshole to Gou, was he?

"You think the water's high enough to swim in now?" Haru asked.

Rin stared at him, covering his face with his arm. "Uh, probably. Why?" Rin replied.

Haru stood up and held out his hand. "Cause I wanna swim with you."

Haru was smiling, soft expression gracing his features. Soft wind blowing through his wet hair, the sun behind him, eyes a brighter blue than Rin had ever seen them before.

Haru loved swimming more than anything. And he wanted to share it with _Rin_.

Rin smiled and took his hand, using it to help him off. "Then what are we waiting for?" he asked, ripping off his jacket and running to the water. "Race ya!" he shouted.

Haru gasped and ran after him. The jumped in the water at the same time, Haru coming up for air first, and then Rin pulling him back down, hugging him tightly. He wasn't trying to drown him, but the water wrapped around them like a cold blanket. Rin loved the feel of it.

Eventually, they had to come up for air again, and then they were laughing. Rin rubbed the salt out of his eyes to get a good view of his friend. He was so adorable when he laughed, he wanted to keep that sound with him forever. "Haru?" he whispered.

Haru stopped laughed, humming in response to Rin's voice.

"Have I ever told you how much I love your laugh?"

Haru opened his eyes in confusion, only then for Rin to kiss him.

One... two... three... 10 seconds. Then Rin let go. Haru's face held so many different expressions, and all of them made Rin terrified. He dropped his hold on Haru and swam to shore. He didn't say a word as he grabbed his jacket and sprinted all the way back to Samezuka. 

🌊🌊🌊

Oh my God.

Rin slammed the door shut behind him, covered his mouth, and stood stock-still until his breathing calmed down and his heart rate stopped going a mile a minute. He stood there for about 2 minutes.

Oh my God.

Rin slid down the door and sat on the floor. Sousuke wasn't back, he wouldn't be here to witness him in this state.

Oh my God.

He had kissed Haru. _Oh my God, he kissed Haru_.

🌊🌊🌊

Haru surfaced for air. He was sitting in his bathtub, trying to process everything that had just happened.

Rin had... what was the word? Oh, right. Kiss. He kissed him. He put his mouth on Haru's and he had romantic intention behind it.

But... Haru wasn't against it. He kind of liked it? Was that weird? It probably was weird. But people in movies kissed all the time? So it was fine, right?

Ugh, all this was giving Haru a headache. He should talk to Rin, but all he wanted to do right now was sit in his bathtub with the water. Honestly, I don't blame him.

He swore he talk to Rin tomorrow... if he remembered.

🌊🌊🌊

He didn't remember.

Ergo, it was now a week later.

Ergo, Haru not had to think of a reason to tell the security guards why he wanted to come and see Rin.

Fortunately, he didn't have to. Gou saved him.

Just as he was contemplating breaking in, which he was not above doing, Gou saw him in front of Samezuka have an existential crisis. "Um, Haru?" she tapped his shoulder. "What are you doing here?"

Haru almost was startled by her. "Oh, hi, Gou. I need to talk to Rin."

Gou let a huge smile cross her face. "No problem! I'll get you in!"

They walked into the building. The check-in lady smiled at them. She looked very old and possibly blind and deaf. Haru flexed his knuckles as Gou talked to her. "Gou Matsuoka and guest here to visit Rin Matsuoka," she said in a cheerful voice.

The lady nodded and pulled out two wrist bands and put them on Haru and Gou. "I'll tell him you two are visiting. His room number is 216," she said equally as cheerful.

Gou smiled at her. "Thank you!"

They walked up two flights of stairs. They stopped in front of the room and Gou patted Haru on the back. "Have fun! I'm going to talk to a friend of mine who goes here," she said and bounced off.

Part of Haru wished she would come with him, another part was glad she was gone. He didn't know how she would react if things ended with kisses again.

He raised his hand to knock on the door. It was a few quick raps and then his hands fell behind his back. There were a few rustling sounds from the other side and then the door opened, revealing a disheveled Rin looking like he got out of the shower not five minutes ago.

Rin perked up when he saw Haru, out of confusion or excitement, Haru couldn't tell. Haru offered him a crooked smile and waved once. "Hi, Rin." he said, voice slightly cracking on his name.

Rin blinked. "Haru? What... what are you doing here?" he asked.

"Can I come in?"

"What-Why?"

"I wanna talk to you."

"Um, I guess so?"

"Thanks."

Haru waltzed into the room and sat down on Rin's bed. Why were the beds in Samezuka so springy? Rin sat down on his desk chair, backward because apparently that was 'cooler'. Haru just thought it looked uncomfortable. "Okay, what do you want to talk about?" Rin asked.

Haru chewed on his tongue. "Uh, yesterday. We swam together." he started.

Rin nodded. "Yeah, I remember that." he regarded.

"And... we also kissed." Haru raised his fingers to his lips.

Rin became flustered at that and looked away. "Hey, I said I was sorry already! I didn't know you wouldn't like it."

He seemed... angry? Why was he angry? "I didn't say that."

Rin met his eyes again. "Listen, I get it, you don't like me."

"I like you."

"You moron. I mean like like me."

"Like... like?"

Rin groaned and pressed his palms against his eyes. "Of course you're too daft to understand that! You don't _love_ me. Do ya understand that?" he snapped.

Haru wasn't stupid. He knew what love was. But... "Wait, does that mean _you_ love _me_?" he asked, pointing to himself.

"Of course I do, Aquaman." Rin huffed. "You think I would've kissed you otherwise?"

Haru blinked. Oh. So Rin did love him. So he wanted to go on dates and kiss and... wait did he want to do that?! He probably did. But the big question was, did Haru feel the same?

There was a bit of silence. Haru was lost in thought, intently staring at Rin, who was becoming increasingly uncomfortable.

"So... you want to swim with me?" was the first thing that came out of Haru's mouth.

Rin was taken aback by this. Confessions weren't supposed to go this way, they were supposed to be special and romantic. This was neither. Haru was super dense so of course, everything had to be blunt with him. Rin sighed. "Yeah. I wanna swim with you. I've always wanted to swim with you. I love you, how could I not."

Both their brains were waterlogged.

Ha, did you get the pun?

Haru smiled. "Okay. Let's swim together," he spoke.

Rin offered a smile of his own. "Does this mean, we're dating now?" he asked.

Haru nodded. "Yeah. If that means we can swim together forever, then yes," he replied.

"Alright, then if we're dating..." Rin got out of his seat and walked over to Haru, gently caressing his cheek. "Then don't complain when I do this."

Haru knew it would end with kisses.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Awww, look at these, so adorable.
> 
> Next part will be out next week!


End file.
